Sick Day
by Skylark Starflower
Summary: Acronix has fallen ill and now it's up to Krux to bring him medicine. Only problem is, Krux hasn't stepped foot in a pharmacy in 40 years. Not to mention the Vermillion Commanders know nothing about dealing with sick humans.


Author's Note/Disclaimer: I don't own Ninjago. I wish.

Just taking the Time Twins out for another little romp because I love these dorks. :P

" **Sick Day"  
By Skylark Starflower  
Started May 8th, 2017  
Finished May 25th, 2017**

Krux was up at the crack of dawn, the same as ever. His routine had barely changed over the past forty years, and he had no plans to alter it in the future. That said, it didn't surprise him in the slightest to find that his brother was still asleep. When allowed, Acronix tended towards laziness, sometimes sleeping in as late as noon.

The two planned to attack the Ninja's stronghold today, so Acronix would just have to deal with getting up early. Still, there was no point in waking him before breakfast was ready. Krux didn't need to listen to him complain while he cooked.

Soon, he had a simple breakfast almost ready, and turned to Commander Blunck. "Go fetch my brother. Let him know his eggs will get cold if he doesn't come quickly."

The Vermillion saluted and scurried off to do as he was told while Krux put the finishing touches on the food. A few moments later, Blunck returned, alone and slightly flustered.

"Um…" he began, fidgeting with his hands.

"Yes? What is it?" Krux snapped.

"He, uh…he says he's not hungry."

Krux paused. Acronix rarely refused food, especially when his brother cooked it. He frowned. "If he's just trying to stay in bed longer…"

With that, he pushed past Blunck and went to check in on Acronix himself. He found his twin, still lying in bed, but Krux could instantly tell that something wasn't right. Still, he reached out, taking Acronix by the shoulder and shaking him.

"Get up, brother," he growled.

Acronix responded by groaning and feebly attempting to swat his brother's hand away.

"What is wrong with you?" Krux continued. He could see the answer for himself the moment Acronix rolled over to peer up at him blearily, frowning. His twin's face was flushed with fever, his hair a slick mess of sweat.

"'m not feeling well…" Acronix muttered.

Krux huffed, brushing Acronix's sodden, unkempt hair aside before pressing the back of his hand to his brother's forehead, even though he already knew it was going to be hot to the touch. He should have seen this coming. Acronix had been looking a little peaked for the last few days.

"I am willing to bet this has something to do with the time you fell in the sewer while chasing those cutesy fighting monster things on that stupid BorgPad," grumbled Krux, shaking his head. Acronix's expression became decidedly sulky, but he said nothing. "Either way, we can't attack the ninja with you running a fever."

He stood before pulling up the covers, attempting to make his brother at least a little more comfortable. "Rest. I will bring you some medicine."

Acronix was silent for a moment longer. "Sorry…" he whispered, looking briefly apologetic before his eyes slid closed and he fell asleep once more.

Krux just shook his head and left the room. Once back in the common room, he cast about for the Vermillion Commanders. His expression soured when he spotted Blunck and Raggmunk, "craftily" attempting to steal the plates of scrambled eggs. Machia was just coming in the other door, her intent to stop them clear in the way she was carrying herself.

Krux raised a hand to stay her before addressing the two. "Go ahead. I have no use for it now."

He shook his head in disgust as the two cheered, tucking into the now cold meal with gusto, spilling eggs everywhere. He decided that the job of cleaning the mess would fall to the two commanders before turning his attention back to Machia.

"My brother has fallen ill, so the attack will have to be postponed until he is well again."

"Understood. What shall we do in the meantime?" Machia replied.

"Continue to outfit as many Vermillion warriors as we can, I suppose. There's not much else we can do but wait. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get some medicine for my brother."

Krux went to his herbal medicine store and began to root through it. He didn't have much use for it, himself. Over the past forty years, he'd been sick all of three times. Still, somehow, it seemed he had managed to run out of Feverfew, Meadowsweet and pretty much anything else he could use to treat a fever. He frowned. Now what? He let out an irritated grunt. The only way to find more would be to go out into the city and look for it. Otherwise, he had nothing to treat his brother with.

"Commander Machia!" he barked.

The snake woman snapped to attention. "Yes?"

"Look after my brother. I need to run an errand into town."

"It shall be done." With that, Machia marched off to Acronix's room to do as she was told.

Krux knew his secret identity as Dr. Saunders was already blown, so he didn't even bother to waste the time disguising himself as he left. If he ran into the ninja on the way to the pharmacy, he'd deal with the situation as it happened. Until then, the most important thing was helping his brother.

X X X

Machia entered Acronix's room, stopping to study him as he slept. The younger twin was on his side, curled up into a miserable looking ball. Every now and then, he would shuffle and moan before falling silent and still again.

She didn't actually know anything about caring for the sick, but she would follow her orders to the best of her abilities. Still, she stood there awkwardly, unsure of what else to do. It was several minutes before Blunck and Raggmunk came wandering in, looking a little lost.

"Machia?" Blunck ventured.

"What?" she snapped.

"What are we supposed to be doing today? No one has told us anything."

Machia considered the question for a moment. The forging of helmets and armour for the Vermillion warriors would continue even without the commanders' supervision. There really wasn't anything else to do, now that the attack had been pushed back.

"Perhaps you could help me," she replied finally. "Krux has tasked me with looking after his brother while he's away. The two of you can look up information on treating fever."

"Yes, commander Machia!" the two male commanders replied before running off. Machia couldn't help but frown as their thoughts filtered in through the hive mind. This was a mistake…

X X X

Krux made his way down the road, heading for the pharmacy nearest the museum. He was a little surprised that no one on the street gave him a second glance, despite his unusual dress. It didn't bother him at all to know that, regardless of everything he and his brother did, no one recognized them. In fact, he kind of preferred it that way.

None of that was important right now, though. First and foremost, he needed to find medicine to treat his brother with. Focusing on that, he entered the pharmacy, grumbling to himself as the doors silently slid open. Stupid mechanism – he was perfectly capable of opening a door on his own!

Krux stepped inside, wincing at the easy listening music being pumped throughout the store, and began to look around. There were plenty of liquids and tablets and other such things to be had, but he couldn't see any herbs. Frowning, he continued to search the aisles, becoming more and more frustrated. Nothing was familiar here.

Despite being around for the past four decades of progress, this was the first time Krux had entered a pharmacy in all that time. Until now, he never had a reason to. It wasn't anything like he remembered from the past. He had to admit, he was completely lost.

"Stupid technology," he grumbled. "Everything was so much easier without it."

As he rounded a corner, he nearly bumped into a blonde teenager in a bright green jacket. He was about to snap at the kid to watch where he was going before freezing. He recognized the boy.

Unfortunately for Krux, Lloyd recognized him, too. The Green Ninja nearly dropped the bag he was carrying as he fell into a defensive stance.

"Krux! What are you doing here?" he demanded.

Krux frowned at him before waving a hand dismissively. "I don't have time for this."

With that, he brushed past the startled boy and continued to glare at the shelves of various medications. Lloyd straightened up, relaxing his posture as he tucked his bag into a pocket. He regarded Krux with a curious expression.

"Is there something you're looking for?" Lloyd couldn't help but ask. It was strange enough to find one half of the Hands of Time here, but he didn't seem interested in a fight, either. "Where's your brother?"

Krux looked askance at Lloyd, silent as he considered the question. It was none of Lloyd's business, but Krux had to admit he did need help. Still, did it have to come from one of the ninja, of all people?

 _This is foolish,_ he thought. _My brother is relying on me, and the faster I get this over with, the better._

He huffed in resignation. "My brother is ill and I need to get him medicine, but…" He waved an arm angrily at the rows of shelving. "I don't know what any of this is!"

Lloyd blinked. "What, really? I thought you were the one who was here for the last forty years." It wasn't intended as an insult, but Krux still growled in response.

"I haven't had need of a pharmacy since my brother and I were separated. I didn't know medicine had become such a joke in the meantime!"

Krux's outburst drew the stares of several startled customers, but he didn't seem to notice or care. Lloyd grinned sheepishly, trying to calm the older man down in an attempt to avoid a scene. "Sorry, I didn't know. Anyway, tell me what you need, and I'll do my best to help you find it."

X X X

Machia stood quietly, watching for any change in Acronix's condition. He had been sleeping for the last while, but now he seemed to be coming around. She hoped he wouldn't – she didn't know what to do when he woke, and it bothered her. She didn't like feeling lost, it made her irritable.

Despite her wishes, Acronix stirred, groaning, his eyes slowly blinking open. He flopped onto his back before scanning the room drowsily, growing confused.

"Commander Machia?" he said quietly. "Where is my brother?"

"He has gone into the city to find medicine. How are you feeling?"

Acronix didn't reply, staring glassy-eyed at the ceiling. He could barely lift his head, and it hurt to think. He wasn't sure if he was getting worse, but he certainly wasn't any better.

The silence was becoming awkward when Blunck and Raggmunk came running in. Blunck was carrying what appeared to be a sopping wet facecloth in his hands. Grinning, he approached Acronix and threw the cloth into his face.

Normally, Acronix's reaction would be much stronger, but he was sick. As it was, he raised a hand and brushed it off, scowling as fiercely as he could through the haze of his illness. The effect was rather pathetic, actually.

Machia turned on Blunck, giving him a smack before snatching up the discarded facecloth. "Idiot."

"Hey!" protested Blunck.

Machia glared at him and let out a quiet hiss.

"I'll…um…just be over here, then." With that, he wandered over to the far side of the room, away from Machia.

Through the hive mind, Machia knew what the other two commanders had been looking at, but for the life of her, she couldn't figure out how they could misinterpret the information so badly. Grumbling, she turned to Raggmunk. "Fetch a bowl of cool water."

As he scrambled off to do as told, Machia wrung out the facecloth and folded it into a neat rectangle. Then she placed it on Acronix's forehead. He closed his eyes with a grateful sigh of relief.

"Do you know when my brother will return?" he asked slowly, visibly drifting back to sleep.

Machia shook her head. "I will let you know when he returns. For now, you should probably rest."

Acronix didn't need to be told twice. Heck, he probably didn't need to be told at all, since he had fallen asleep in the middle of her reply.

She was just straightening up when Raggmunk returned, a bowl of water in his hands. "Where did you want me to put this?"

She pointed to the table next to the bed, the other commander setting down his cargo carefully where indicated. She refreshed the damp cloth on Acronix's forehead before turning on the other two Vermillion, glowering.

"What is wrong with the two of you? Why is it so difficult for you to follow simple orders?!"

"Hey!" Blunck protested. "We did what you asked!"

"Yeah!" Raggmunk chimed in.

Machia just stared at the two in disbelief for a moment before sighing and slapping her forehead. She was surrounded by idiots.

X X X

Lloyd arrived back at the temple much later than he expected, due to his surprise run-in with Krux, but no one seemed to notice. Either that or they didn't care. With a sigh, he made his way to his room, stashing away the medication he'd gone to the pharmacy to pick up.

For a moment, he debated telling the others about his encounter with Krux before deciding against it. All it would do was cause arguments. The others wouldn't understand why Lloyd chose to help rather than take the chance to capture the villain. Even trying to explain might just end up exacerbating the current situation with the other ninja not taking his leadership seriously. It wasn't like he even really _wanted_ this job!

He realised with a start that he was already starting to sound like Sensei Wu, keeping secrets from those under his charge. Lloyd knew that tended to blow up in Wu's face more often than not, but the green ninja was beginning to understand why his uncle might do it in the first place. If Lloyd told the others about his meeting with Krux, it might only serve to undermine his authority. It would be best to tell everyone later, after the situation was dealt with.

With another deep sigh, Lloyd left his room, heading out to find the others.

X X X

Machia perked up as she heard a door slam, followed by Krux loudly grumbling something about 'stupid pharmacies.' She and the other two commanders left Acronix to sleep and headed out to meet him.

The elder twin was pulling items from a grocery bag. Among them were a thermometer, a bottle of pills labelled 'acetaminophen' and a small book that seemed to be about treating illness at home.

"Your brother has been asking for you," Machia said, getting Krux's attention.

"Hmph. Of course he has." Krux poured a glass of water, gathered the medicine and made his way to his brother's room. He raised an eyebrow in approval when he noticed the cloth cooling Acronix's forehead.

"Good thinking, commanders," he said, honestly impressed by their efforts. Blunck and Raggmunk exchanged grins as Machia frowned.

"It was a…joint effort," she said eventually. She couldn't tell if Krux understood what the reluctance in her voice meant, but she supposed it wasn't that important.

Krux set his items on the bedside table, next to the bowl of water, before attempting to wake his brother. He took Acronix by the shoulder and shook him gently. "Wake up. I've brought your medicine."

It took a few more shakes before Acronix even responded. Not realising that it was Krux sitting next to him, he grumbled, "Go 'way…"

"It's me, brother. Now wake up and take your medicine."

That got Acronix's attention. His eyes snapped open, casting about until he found Krux. He attempted to sit up, but ended up flopping back with a groan, growing dizzy. Krux couldn't help a bemused smile.

"Here, this should help make you feel better," Krux said, reaching for the bottle of pills. He twisted the cap, but it wouldn't open. "What in Ninjago?"

For a moment, he struggled to open the container before he finally realised there was printing on the lid. Following the directions, the child safely cap popped right off, but Krux was already in a foul mood because of it, cursing medicine bottle technology. Acronix couldn't help a small, bemused smile of his own.

"Oh, be quiet," Krux snarled, even though his brother didn't speak. He shook out two pills – the dosage Lloyd had recommended, while showing Krux the directions on the packaging – and handed them to his brother. Before he could say anything, or even reach for the glass of water, Acronix popped both pills into his mouth and began to chew them.

Krux wasn't sure whether to laugh or scold his brother as Acronix made a face, rolled over and spat the medicine back out.

"Bleech! Are you trying to poison me, brother?" Acronix spluttered.

"You're not supposed to chew them!" replied Krux, perhaps sounding grumpier than intended. He shook two more pills from the bottle, but this time made sure his brother had the glass before he passed them over. He had to help Acronix sit up to drink, since his brother was still becoming lightheaded when he did so, but this time he managed to swallow the medicine without tasting it. Krux helped him lay back down, adjusting his bedding to make him more comfortable.

"Rest now. The medicine should help make you feel better soon."

"For something that tastes so foul, I should hope so…" Acronix muttered. He shuffled slightly before allowing his eyes to close and sleep to claim him once more. Machia stepped forward to refresh the cloth on his forehead before Krux shooed everyone out.

It would probably be a few days yet, even with the medicine, before Acronix was back on his feet. Krux found himself hoping the ninja made the most of the short respite the situation offered them. If everything else went according to plan, it would be their last.

 **The End**


End file.
